Eyes Forced Open
by Sarah1281
Summary: In a bid to make the Once-ler finally face what he's doing, the Lorax suggests a day trip to see what's going on with the promise that he'll leave him alone if he's not convinced. The Once-ler agrees to try to get some peace. How bad could it possibly be?
1. Chapter 1

Eyes Forced Open

Chapter One

Disclaimer: I do not own the Lorax.

It was Wednesday at three and the Lorax had once again barged into the Once-ler's office.

The Once-ler took one last look at the speech he was planning on giving later and then set it aside knowing that there was very little point in attempting to work while the Lorax was in the room.

"I know I hired security," the Once-ler said absently.

The Lorax frowned. "What, you mean those bulky guys who kept following me? I went into the bathroom and climbed out the window."

"Of _course_ you did," the Once-ler said, sighing. "Why do I pay them again?"

The Lorax shrugged. "I don't know, kid. But maybe they have better luck with other people?"

"Either that or no one else actually wants to bother me as much as you do," the Once-ler muttered. "But then, why take that chance?"

"Listen, beanpole, we've got to talk about the trees," the Lorax said seriously.

Wordlessly, the Once-ler gestured towards the window.

The Lorax's eyes widened. "Are you trying to get rid of me already? But I've barely said anything! I've got to say, I'm just not getting on board with your increasing lack of accessibility. Why, I remember back when I could just walk in here and talk to you whenever I felt like it…"

Not like that had changed no matter how much effort people put into trying to change it. The Once-ler continued to point towards the window.

"What, do you want me to exit _out the window_?" the Lorax demanded, horrified. "You're getting a lot more corrupt than I had thought you were. That family of yours is a terrible influence."

"Let's leave my family out of this, okay?" the Once-ler suggested.

"I'm just saying that a fall from this height could kill someone, especially if you don't open the window first and right now it's closed," the Lorax pointed out.

The Once-ler rolled his eyes. "No, I'm not trying to get you to jump out the window and while I would sincerely like you to leave, I know better than to try to get you out of here so quickly. That would only make this take longer."

"Then what's with all the pointing?" the Lorax asked suspiciously.

"You're here to tell me that I'm ruining the environment and must stop before it's too late, right?" the Once-ler asked rhetorically. "Just like the last hundred or so times."

"If you've been listening to me all this time then why haven't you done something?" the Lorax demanded, his left eye twitching.

"I just want you, for the sake of argument you understand, to look out this window and tell me all about the death and destruction going on outside," the Once-ler told him. "And I promise to think about every word you say."

"Because we all know how much your promises are worth," the Lorax said darkly.

That hurt but since it was technically true, the Once-ler chose to ignore it. "Just look out there, will you?"

Surprised and now on his guard, the Lorax went over to the window (checking behind him a few times to make sure the Once-ler wasn't about to push him out, just to be safe) and gazed outside.

The Once-ler stood and walked over to him, making sure to stand a few feet away so as not to further worry the Lorax.

As far as the eye could see there was an idyllic paradise with animals frolicking happily under the multitude of trees. Except for his own buildings, the landscape looked much the same as it always had.

"Well?" the Once-ler asked smugly.

"…This proves nothing," the Lorax claimed eventually.

"No?" the Once-ler asked, amused. "It's just a little hard for me to believe that I'm destroying everything when not even you can look at this and make the case."

"The trees **here** haven't been touched," the Lorax conceded. "And clearly not the trees in areas that you go but if you just looked elsewhere-"

"Oh, that is such an excuse," the Once-ler burst out impatiently. "How easy is it to say that 'Oh, somewhere else where you can't see, things are terrible'! And how can I possible disprove that since I don't know where this alleged destruction is occurring? Oh, right, I remember…everywhere I haven't looked!"

"I am _not_ making this up," the Lorax said, highly offended. "And I can't help it if you're being blind!"

The Once-ler felt a little guilty for that. He didn't believe the Lorax, of course, (how could he when all the evidence indicated otherwise?) but he knew that the Lorax believed his own spiel wholeheartedly and that he really did mean well. Extremists usually did.

"Of course not," the Once-ler assured him. "You're just…exaggerating to make a point. I completely understand, believe me, and I agree that if what you said _was_ happening then it would be cause for concern. Rest assured, we won't let it get that far."

"You already have!" the Lorax cried out, looking like he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

The Once-ler silently pointed to the window again.

The Lorax sighed as though _the Once-ler_ was being the unreasonable one. "I'll be back. I need to think."

"Could you make an appointment on your way out?" the Once-ler asked hopefully. "It would cause less of a disruption to my schedule and you wouldn't have to run from security."

The Lorax shook his head as he marched towards the door. "The forest doesn't run on _your schedule_!"

The Once-ler translated that into normal people speech. "If you don't have a watch, I can always buy you one!"

The Lorax didn't dignify that with a response.

* * *

"Mr. Once-ler, your three o'clock is here," his secretary warned him.

It was Wednesday at three again.

The Once-ler pushed his paperwork aside, pleased that he had some advanced notice this time. His conversations with the Lorax always took a lot out of him. It was just so trying to be faced with someone who was convinced that everything that had ever made you worth anything was going to bring about doom and gloom to everyone in the city and the forest to boot. Not to mention that he still sort of considered the Lorax a friend even though he was well-aware that the feeling was entirely one-sided.

"I didn't make an appointment," the Lorax grumbled as he walked in.

"No but you come every Wednesday at three so I made one for you," the Once-ler explained. "You're welcome."

"I wasn't going to thank you. And I am _not_ predictable!" the Lorax protested.

The Once-ler glanced pointedly at his clock. "Well…"

"I'm _not_," the Lorax insisted.

"Whatever you say," the Once-ler said, deciding to humor him. "So tell me, how am I destroying the environment today?"

"The same way you are every other day of the week," the Lorax replied. "You're cutting down all of the trees."

The Once-ler glanced out his window. "It doesn't look any more devastated than it did last week."

"You say that you can't just take my word for it? I get that. It's completely ridiculous that after all we've been through you can't _trust_ me but I get it," the Lorax said tragically.

" 'All we've been through'?" the Once-ler repeated. "Like that time you tried to kill me?"

"That was an _accident_," the Lorax said virtuously. "And I saved you afterwards."

"It would have been a lot more impressive if you hadn't put me in that situation in the first place and if I were positive you didn't save me just because Pipsqueak was still on the bed," the Once-ler said flatly.

"Well, I did warn you," the Lorax said defensively.

"You really didn't make it clear that my very _life_ was on the line," the Once-ler argued.

"Ah, isn't reminiscing about the good old days fun?" the Lorax said, changing tactics. "It would be really great if we could get back to those and not have to worry about you destroying all of the trees."

The Once-ler glared at him. "Some of us _aren't_ worrying about that."

"That's part of the problem," the Lorax said sagely. "But like I said, I get it. You have to really see things to believe them."

"You know something else I saw? I saw the funeral you gave and how melodramatic you were after I cut down _one_ tree," the Once-ler announced. "So really, I can easily believe we're just cutting down a few and things are fine but you can't handle it."

"There is nothing wrong with being sad at the senseless loss of life," the Lorax said firmly. "And funerals are customary when living things die, or so I understand."

"When living _people _die," the Once-ler corrected. "Maybe even living pets, especially when kids are involved."

"Oh, I see how it is. You think your people have a monopoly on funerals!" the Lorax accused.

"Well…I mean…sort of?" the Once-ler fumbled. "Trees can't even see or hear or think or feel!"

"Go ahead, try to justify your snobbery," the Lorax huffed.

"Oh come on!" the Once-ler protested.

"Personally, I blame that family of yours," the Lorax confided. "But that's not why I'm here. You'll have the rest of your life to seek out therapy to fix the damage that they've done."

"The damage that _someone's_ done, certainly," the Once-ler muttered.

"I've decided that the best way to convince you that what I'm saying is true is to actually _show_ you," the Lorax declared.

The Once-ler blinked. "That…would actually be appreciated. How do you propose to do that?"

"We are going to take a field trip," the Lorax informed him.

The Once-ler looked at all the paperwork he still had to deal with. "Oh, I don't know. I have time here and there to deal with you but that sounds like it will take much longer."

The Lorax frowned as he tried to think of a way to convince him.

Finally, he snapped his fingers. "I know! How about this: you come with me and see the devastation that you've wrought upon the landscape and are continuing to cause for just one day – one full day – and then I promise that if you're not convinced then I'm not going to bother you with this ever again."

That did sound awfully tempting. "How do I know that you'll keep your word?"

"Hey, I'm not the one with a history of breaking their promises here," the Lorax pointed out.

"One broken promise does not mean that I have a _history_ of breaking them!" the Once-ler objected.

"What happens in the past is history and I've only seen you make one promise…which you broke," the Lorax replied.

"Well, how do I know that you haven't broken plenty of your promises in your time?" the Once-ler demanded.

"You don't," admitted the Lorax. "But I haven't broken any to _you_, now have I?"

"No but you did try to kill me," the Once-ler reminded him.

"I don't recall ever promising you that I wouldn't," the Lorax said calmly.

"I think I'd like a promise to that effect before I even consider going somewhere alone with you," the Once-ler said, eying the Lorax warily.

The Lorax stuck his hand out. "Very well. Kid, if you come with me then I promise that I won't try to kill you again or do anything that I think could seriously injure you."

The Once-ler didn't move. "You know that sounds a lot like you're not going to promise that if I don't go with you…"

"Look, do you want your promise or not?" the Lorax demanded.

Reluctantly, the Once-ler took his hand. "Yeah, I do."

"Great. So when are we leaving?" the Lorax asked him. "Is now good?"

The Once-ler glanced again at his desk. "Are you kidding? I can't possibly leave on such short notice! This company would fall apart without me, you know."

"Well when then? Tomorrow?" the Lorax pressed.

"I've got another press conference," the Once-ler said, shaking his head. "I guess I can do Friday, though."

"Two days from now," the Lorax said, frowning. "I don't know, kid."

"What's wrong with that?" the Once-ler demanded. "Surely you can't possibly think I'll finish destroying everything in _two days_."

"No but every day you continue this only causes more devastation," the Lorax told him. "I'm just worried that your family will talk you out of it like they do every time I or the animals try to come anywhere near you when they're around."

"Oh, they do _not_," the Once-ler said, rolling his eyes.

"Haven't you ever wondered why you never see Pipsqueak or the others anymore?" the Lorax asked him.

"I assumed that you had turned them against me with your wild tales of me destroying their home," the Once-ler said coolly.

"Forest animals just don't think like that," the Lorax explained. "That's why they need me to watch out for them. And why do you think I keep coming to your office? You might have security but that secretary of yours refuses to let your family just barge in whenever they want to."

"That would explain why they want me to fire her…" the Once-ler murmured. He had actually tried to fire her the first time his family had suggested it but she had threatened to make up at least half a dozen ailing relatives that would make him a terrible person for even considering letting her go and she had only gotten half-way through describing the first one before he had remembered that she was, in fact, an excellent secretary.

"So?" the Lorax prompted. "About your family trying to talk you out of it?"

"If I say that I'll go with you then I'll go with you regardless of what my family says," the Once-ler said firmly. "Why wouldn't they want you to stop interfering anyway?"

"Maybe they realize what you're doing and are afraid that I'll finally make you face the truth," the Lorax suggested.

"That doesn't make any sense," the Once-ler protested. "If they thought that I was wiping out all the trees and we need trees to make thneeds then they'd tell me. We can't do business with no trees."

"I'm not sure that your family is all that business-savvy," the Lorax said delicately.

"I am a grown man and the head of my very own highly successful corporation that is growing by the day," the Once-ler declared importantly. "If I say that I'll go with you and see what it is that you're so concerned about then I _will_ go with you and see what it is that you're so concerned about."

"So…_are_ you saying that you'll come with me?" the Lorax asked pointedly.

The Once-ler sighed. "You're not leaving until I agree, are you?"

The Lorax shrugged. "I've got nowhere to be for the rest of the day."

"Then _fine_," the Once-ler agreed. "I'll see you on Friday. What time should we meet? And where?"

"Oh, I'll come find you," the Lorax assured him.

Something about the way he said that made the Once-ler wonder if this was such a good idea after all. Still, if it got the Lorax off of his back then he'd go along with it. After all, how bad could it possibly be?

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	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Disclaimer: I do not own the Lorax.

The Once-ler highly resented the completely untrue assertion that his family dictated his actions. They worked for _him_ not the other way around. He was not, however, detached from reality to the extent that he didn't realize that they would _not be happy_ and thus he'd have to listen to their spirited attempts to convince him not to go. They wouldn't be changing his mind, of course, but why deal with their disapproval for any longer than strictly necessary? He'd dealt with it for long enough as it was.

As such, it was late Thursday afternoon and he had yet to tell anybody of his plans. He briefly toyed with the idea of just slipping out and going off with the Lorax without telling anybody but that was no good. People would panic and convince themselves that he'd been kidnapped or killed and he didn't want to worry anyone.

He decided that his secretary would definitely need to know and so stopped by her desk before leaving for the day.

"Hello, Mr. Once-ler," she said brightly. She showed him the drawing she'd been working on.

"W-what happened to his head?" the Once-ler asked, a little horrified.

"His hair caught on fire when he was struck by the lightning," she replied as if that were the most natural thing in the world.

"Uh-huh. Of course it was. And the arm?" the Once-ler inquired.

"He was standing just a little too close to one of your tree-cutting machines," she explained. "His hearing has never been the same since that time his head was trapped in a beehive a few years back."

The Once-ler frowned. "Norma-"

"What?" Norma asked innocently. "I'm not _judging_ you; you just asked what happened and I'm telling you. I could lie if you want but do you really want to create that kind of workplace environment?"

It wasn't worth it. "And his feet?"

"A falling tree crushed them," Norma answered cheerfully.

"And that isn't even slightly judging?" the Once-ler asked skeptically.

"I don't see how my brother's misfortunes are in any way a judgment on you," she said, wide-eyed.

Well if that was how she wanted to play it...

"It's just that I didn't think you even _had_ a brother," the Once-ler said delicately.

"As of this afternoon, I have five," Norma informed him.

"Planning on making some more?" the Once-ler asked politely.

Norma blinked at him. "I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Of _course_ you don't," the Once-ler said, sighing.

"And poor Billy's misfortunes are probably just because the tree-felling has the potential to cause some of the most dangerous accidents around," Norma elaborated.

"We have safety codes!" the Once-ler protested. "And people to make sure that they're followed!"

Norma shrugged. "I mentioned Billy's hearing difficulty, didn't I?"

He sighed again. "It's a lovely picture, Norma."

She beamed. "That you! I've been trying to teach myself to draw in my spare time but it's hard to tell if I'm making any progress."

"You've certainly got the graphic injuries part down," the Once-ler told her, finally managing to tear his eyes away from Norma's little scene of horror.

"Did you need something, Mr. Once-ler, or did you just want to talk?" Norma asked him.

It was a fair question since on any given day he was likely to seek her out to speak to her whether he needed something or not. Norma always had something interesting to say and his job, while very gratifying, could get a little monotonous at times so sticking his head into her world for a few minutes was usually a welcome break.

It wasn't as if Norma was the one person in his life who didn't want anything from him (or that he really thought that such a mythical person could exist) but he'd come to appreciate that all she wanted was a steady paycheck. She wasn't looking to become rich since she knew him and _that_ was the novelty.

She didn't live in fear of losing her job (particularly after she had started expanding her family tree) and so she wasn't as stiff and reserved or outright obsequious as most people were around him. He fully believed that a little further difficulty with human action (not that he had ever really excelled at that in the first place) was worth it for his growing success but that didn't mean that he couldn't be glad when he found someone he didn't have to worry about that with.

"I wanted to let you know that I'm not going to be in tomorrow," the Once-ler finally replied.

Norma leaned back in her chair. "_Really_?"

He knew why she was so surprised. He _never_ took time off. Ever.

He forced a smile. "Well, the company's not going to fall apart if I'm not there for one day." Or at least that was what he hoped. Secretly, he wasn't so sure but he had to start having faith in what he'd built one of these days.

"No, I don't think it will," Norma agreed, smiling encouragingly. The Once-ler had the disquieting impression that she knew exactly what he was worried about. "Are you not feeling alright or are you just taking a personal day?"

"Um…" the Once-ler hesitated. He wasn't sick but… "Personal, I guess."

"The Lorax?" Norma asked knowingly.

The Once-ler was stunned. "How'd you know?"

"He's usually hunched over when he leaves and muttering about blind, short-sighted promise-breakers," Norma replied.

And the Once-ler did not feel guilty about that, not at all. He had made that promise after an attempt on his life and the situation had changed quite a bit since then. Any sane man wouldn't hold him to that.

"Two days ago, though, he was dancing on his way to the elevator. He normally takes the stairs," Norma confided, "but I was worried that he could hurt himself with stair-dancing so I talked him out of it."

"His celebration's a bit premature," the Once-ler said uncomfortably.

"What happened?" Norma asked simply.

"I told you how he thinks that thneed production is going to destroy all the trees and ruin everything despite all the evidence to the contrary, right?" the Once-ler asked rhetorically.

"No, but he's been here often enough that I got the general gist," Norma replied. "Does he think that you're going to stop cutting trees down or something?"

"Not even that," the Once-ler replied, shaking his head. "I agreed to spend the day with him tomorrow letting him prove his case to me."

Norma eyed him carefully. "Are you sure you're prepared for what you might find?"

The Once-ler groaned. "Don't tell me you think I'm going to destroy everything, too! You actually work for me. Would you really do that if you thought I was going to be such a disaster?"

"Oh, I don't know. I'm the only bread-winner in my ever-expanding family as you know," Norma said casually. "But honestly, I don't know. It doesn't _seem_ like things are that bad and yet…"

"And yet what?" the Once-ler asked curiously.

"And yet it seems like the Lorax is wasting an awful lot of time and putting a lot of effort into this for him to just be completely wrong," Norma said slowly.

The Once-ler shrugged. "He's the kind to hold tree funerals. I don't doubt that he means what he says, I just don't think his idea of catastrophic destruction is really in line with anyone else's."

Norma nodded. "Be that as it may, you know what you'll do if he's wrong. Have you stopped to consider what you'll do if he's right?"

"He's not," the Once-ler said quickly.

"If he's not then you have nothing to worry about when planning for the worst," Norma replied. "But one of you is wrong and if it's you and not him…what then?"

The Once-ler didn't have an answer to that.

* * *

"_What_?" his mother cried out, horrified. "Oncie, tell me that this is just an awful joke!"

"It's not, mother," the Once-ler assured her, feeling the beginning of a headache coming on and they hadn't even really started yet.

"But this company _needs_ you, Oncie," his mother said urgently, latching onto his arm.

It was difficult to stand up for yourself and feel independent when your mother was clinging to your arm and so he gently detached her and took a step back.

"I'm not planning on abandoning it, Mom," the Once-ler promised. "I'm just taking one day off. Everyone takes days off. It's very healthy or so the company psychologist keeps telling me."

"This is all that horrid Lorax's doing, isn't it?" his mother accused. Was he really that obvious? "Grizelda!"

"I keep him away whenever I can," Aunt Grizelda swore from the other room. It was nice to know what kind of privacy he could expect. "But I can't control who that secretary of his lets in."

"You should really fire her," his mother said seriously.

The Once-ler sighed. "We've had this conversation before. Norma's not going anywhere."

His mother crossed her arms and huffed. "Fine. But I hope you know that I will not have her become a part of this family, Oncie. I just won't stand for it."

"What are you even talking about?" the Once-asked, completely bewildered. He could have sworn that they had just been talking about Norma's job status and not additions to her family that actually existed.

"If you weren't in love with her then you'd follow my completely sensible suggestion of firing her," his mother said matter-of-factly.

"No, I wouldn't," the Once-ler insisted. "I like Norma. She's a good secretary and how could I possibly fire her after what her poor cousin Emily has been through?"

"What does her cousin have to do with anything?" his mother demanded.

But the Once-ler just shook his head. "You do _not_ want to know, believe me."

"Where is that Lorax taking you?" his mother asked worriedly, switching tracks abruptly.

The Once-ler shrugged. "I don't know. Out into the forest, I guess."

"You can't possibly do that!" his mother shouted.

The Once-ler stared blankly at his mother. "Why _not_?"

There couldn't possibly be anything to the theory that his family knew that the Lorax was right and were in explicably trying to hide the truth from him. There just couldn't.

"He'll probably chop you up and eat you or something!" she burst out.

The Once-ler's jaw dropped. "I-I really don't think that-"

"Oh, but he would! And he'd feed you to all of those horrible little forest animals and say that it's perfectly natural because that's how nature works!" his mother insisted. The Once-ler was pretty sure nature didn't chop people into small pieces when it killed them but his mother had always had a tendency to be a little dramatic.

"But the Lorax holds _tree funerals_," the Once-ler protested. The same thing that made him an unreliable source about the environment made him too good of a person to do something like that.

"The Lorax doesn't think that the trees are the epitome of evil," his mother said pointedly.

"He doesn't think that I'm the epitome of evil," the Once-ler protested but secretly he was far from sure. He couldn't actually recall the Lorax having a big problem with anyone but him, after all. Well, that and his family but that was practically the same thing. And even before he had chopped down more than one tree he wouldn't just let them be friends.

As if sensing his uncertainty, his mother pounced. "No? Then why does he keep trying to destroy everything you've worked for?"

"He's just worried," the Once-ler claimed.

"How long are you going to keep defending him, Oncie?" his mother challenged.

The Lorax asked the same thing about his family.

"Mom, the Lorax isn't going to hurt me," the Once-ler insisted.

"I wish I had your faith in the world," his mother sniffed, making the Once-ler feel as if he were about five and knew nothing about the world at all instead of the worldy and successful businessman he was growing into. At least he hadn't disclosed the whole attempted murder issue.

"I can take care of myself, Mom," the Once-ler said patiently.

"I never said you couldn't!" his mother exclaimed, holding up her hands.

"Then why don't you want me to go?" he asked, choosing to ignore the fact that five minutes ago she had accused the Lorax of planning to kill him.

"I just don't know what you think you're going to get out of it," his mother told him. "Some people just refuse to face reality to matter what kind of evidence there is."

"The Lorax says that _I'm_ that kind of a person," the Once-ler said gloomily.

"Well, of course _he_ would," his mother said easily. "He's just projer-um…_projecting_!"

"He promised that after tomorrow he'll stop pestering me, assuming that he's not right." Suddenly anxious, he asked, "He's _not_ right, is he?"

"Oncie, how can you even ask me that?" his mother looked wounded but he did not feel guilty – he _didn't_. "I would never steer you wrong!"

The Once-ler relaxed. "I know. I do. I'm sorry."

"Then why are you planning on going?" His mother just couldn't understand it.

And honestly, he was having a difficult time remembering why he was wasting his time, too. Still, he had always been taught that you should keep your promises unless you had a good reason not to and simply not wanting to go wasn't a very good reason. "It's only one day and the chance that the Lorax _does_ do what he says is worth the risk that he won't."

"If you say so," his mother said skeptically. She snapped her fingers. "Hey, I have an idea! Let's have a family meeting that has nothing whatsoever to do with your plan to throw everything away on the whims of a giant orange peanut!"

As everyone gathered around, the Once-ler rolled his eyes.

Like he'd fall for _that_ one again.

* * *

The Once-ler finally escaped from the 'family meeting' by taking a leaf out of the Lorax's book and pretending to go to the bathroom before climbing out the window. He snuck into his room to get a sleeping bag and a pillow before heading back outside. He figured that this way he'd have more peace tonight and tomorrow when the Lorax came.

Besides, it had been awhile since he slept under the stars anyway. He didn't need to anymore as his finances were extremely secure but why _not_ take the time every now and then?

He looked around carefully, searching for any sign that the Lorax might be right. As usual, he found nothing.

The sky was clear and he could see hundreds if not _thousands_ of stars staring back at him. He knew that at least one of them was probably a planet but he didn't know enough about the subject to know which one. He wasn't even sure he was picking out the constellations right. They were nice to look at, though, regardless of whether or not he knew what any of it meant. If things were really that bad then the smog would cover the sky, wouldn't it? Light certainly did the trick in a city he had passed through on his way here.

A few of the trees had been cut down in the area when his family had first gotten his permission to cut down a few trees but it was only a few stumps, maybe a dozen. And then, of course, there was the tree that started it all, still with its ring of rocks. Looking at what was essentially a tree corpse was a bit disconcerting but hardly an emergency. Stumps provided good places to sit, anyway. He wasn't anywhere approaching an old man but he still didn't enjoy sitting on the ground half as much as he used to when he was younger.

But, those few stumps aside (stumps that he imagined were present in many areas of the forest which could cause distress to someone like the Lorax but not be a problem), there were trees as far as he could see. They were tall and proud and colorful, swaying gently in the breeze and occasionally tufts would drop onto the ground or go blowing into the wind.

There was still plenty of fruit hanging from the trees so his activities were hardly causing any of the animals that were still clearly in the area to go hungry. The animals were rarely to be found around him anymore but he had thought that was the Lorax and the Lorax insisted it was his family. If even the Lorax didn't think they were avoiding him because he was actively killing them then chances were that he wasn't.

Looking around at this paradise he'd been lucky enough to stumble upon, the Once-ler knew that there was _nothing_ that the Lorax could show him that would convince him that any of this was in danger or that he was wrong in what he did.

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	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Disclaimer: I do not own the Lorax.

Note: So I know that in the book the trees take 30 years to fully grow but they seem to grow a lot quicker in the movie.

It was barely light when the Once-ler's eyes flew open. Three Humming-Fish were crowing loudly in the tree right above his head.

"_This_ is why I usually sleep indoors," he muttered, trying to decide if he'd rather use his pillow to rest his head on or to try to muffle the fish. He didn't know what time it was but it was far too early for him to be up.

"Oh no, don't go back to sleep," the Lorax ordered, pulling the pillow away from him and flinging it a few feet away.

"Why not?" the Once-ler asked, slowly sitting up and yawning. "And you're getting that, by the way."

"No, I am not," the Lorax replied promptly. "And you don't have time to sleep. You gave me one day to show you the errors of your way and I don't intend to waste a minute of it."

"So you woke me up at ridiculous o'clock?" the Once-ler demanded, rubbing his eyes. "Why not just wake me up at midnight if you're going to be this pedantic?"

"I thought about that," the Lorax admitted. "But that would be rude, now wouldn't it?"

"Don't take this the wrong way but I think I hate you," the Once-ler announced.

"Yeah, I've gotten that before," the Lorax said casually. "Now, hurry up and get dressed so we can go. We're burning daylight here."

"Daylight isn't fully awake yet, either," the Once-ler claimed.

The Lorax just stared at him.

The Once-ler sighed. "Fine. Give me a minute to get ready." He rolled up his sleeping bag, retrieved the pillow that the Lorax hadn't brought back like he was supposed to, and then staggered towards the house.

"Hey, what are you doing?" the Lorax demanded.

"I have to put these away and then go get dressed," the Once-ler explained. "I'll only be-actually, scratch that. Since you're feeling so literal today let's go with I'll only be _fifteen_ minutes."

"But what if you wake your family? Why didn't you bring a change of clothes with you?" the Lorax pressed.

"Because then I'd still need to drop my stuff off in my room," the Once-ler explained.

"You couldn't have just left it out for a few hours?" the Lorax asked.

The look that the Once-ler gave him made it clear that that was a very stupid question and thus not worthy of his time.

The Lorax sighed. "Fine. I'll be waiting out here. You've got fifteen minutes, beanpole, before I have no choice but to assume that your family kidnapped you and the Humming-Fish sound the alarm."

"…Kidnapped from my own house and held hostage in my own house?" the Once-ler couldn't believe it.

The Lorax shrugged. "Hey, don't look at me. They're _your_ family. And speaking of, aren't you a little too old and 'wildly successful' to still be living with your mother?"

"Um, actually my mother lives with me because I'm the provider," the Once-ler insisted.

"Yeah? Who brought the RV the house sprung out of?" the Lorax challenged.

The Once-ler disappeared into the house, shutting the door behind him just a little harder than necessary.

* * *

"We've been walking for hours," the Once-ler complained as he trailed after the Lorax. They were walking uphill and though the forest around them was very beautiful, he was getting bored with the sights.

"We have not. It's only been forty-five minutes," the Lorax said, holding up a very familiar-looking watch.

"Hey, is that _my_ watch?" the Once-ler demanded. "I've been looking for that!"

The Lorax shrugged. "You offered to get me one."

"Yeah, but not _mine_," the Once-ler said, grabbing for the watch.

The Lorax pulled it away. "I see that there has been some miscommunication here. You should really try to be clearer in the future."

"Everyone _else_ can understand me just fine," the Once-ler grumbled. "And I won't have to worry about you anymore after today."

"You're so certain," the Lorax said, frowning.

"If I wasn't do you really think that I would have the policies that I do?" the Once-ler demanded.

The Lorax stopped momentarily. "No, I don't," he admitted. "But when the last tree falls 'I didn't know' won't be much of a consolation."

The Once-ler rolled his eyes yet again at the Lorax's exaggeration. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"I," the Lorax said, puffing himself up, "am the guardian of the forest-"

"Yeah, yeah, you speak for the trees. I get it," the Once-ler said, exasperated.

"Then you should _get_ that I know where I'm going," the Lorax huffed. "This is a forest, after all."

"Fine," the Once-ler said, crossing his arms. "Are you sure that you actually have a decimated area of forest to show me and aren't just wandering around looking for one?"

The Lorax just gave him a look and the Once-ler knew that that was a stupid question. Regardless of whether the Lorax's definition of 'decimated' lined up with the rest of the population's, he had to have at least one area in mind or he wouldn't be so assiduous with his complaints.

The Lorax stopped suddenly and the Once-ler didn't notice in time so his foot knocked the Lorax over.

"I'm so sorry!" the Once-ler apologized, helping the Lorax up.

The Lorax glared at him. "I didn't expect today to involve your boot up my ass."

"I _said_ I was sorry," the Once-ler said defensively. "It was an accident."

"And yet it still happened. Funny how that works," the Lorax said pointedly.

The Once-ler threw his head back. "Really? Do you have to bring everything back to that?"

"Yes," the Lorax said, nodding. "I must. And if you don't like it then you have only yourself to blame for giving me so much to complain about and to bring everything back to."

"So you spending all your time pestering me is somehow _my _fault?" the Once-ler demanded.

"I wouldn't call it _all_ of my time," the Lorax prevaricated. "But yes, are you really only now getting the picture?"

The Once-ler sighed. "Why did you stop?"

"Oh, that. We're here," the Lorax announced.

The Once-ler blinked and looked around, carefully scanning his surroundings. There might have been a few less trees than there usually was but it still didn't look like the disaster area that the Lorax had described.

"Here? Really?" he asked uncertainly.

"Well, not _here_ exactly," the Lorax admitted.

"Really?" the Once-ler asked again. "Because you just said that-"

The Lorax shook his head. "No, no. I just wanted you to be paying attention for the grand reveal."

"Well, I am most definitely paying attention," the Once-ler promised.

"Then…" the Lorax said slowly as he pushed some bushes to the side. "Behold!"

The Once-ler stepped forward and his eyes nearly bulged right out of his head. There was not one single tree in this clearing. And it wasn't that this was one of those rare treeless clearings, either. Oh, no. This clearing was-

"Do you mind moving to the other side?" the Lorax requested. "It's not that I _mind_ having to hold these back or anything. I'd just rather not do it."

"Oh, sorry," the Once-ler apologized, stepping through to the other side.

The Lorax let the bushes go and walked to the other side to stand next to the Once-ler. "As you were."

Right. Where was he? Oh, yes.

This clearing was a tree graveyard. For all that he'd been unable to take the Lorax's little tree funeral seriously, he couldn't deny that there was something very solemn and horrifying about all of this. It wasn't just one insignificant fallen tree surrounded by dozens if not hundreds of healthy ones like that first felled tree had been.

It was one fallen tree surrounded by dozens if not hundreds of equally dead trees littering the landscape. This had been a great grove once but it had been completely decimated…even when defining that like a normal person and not a Lorax. But maybe the Lorax could accurately define that and other words like it after all.

He had always thought that the ring of stones placed around that one tree stump had been silly and over-the-top and too sentimental. And yet it was because of that that he knew that the tree was mourned. Ironically, the fuss made over that death had helped convince him that cutting down more trees would be fine and that any dissenters were just bleeding hearts.

There were no stones here, not around any of the trees…or at least as far as he could see. He didn't want to think that these stumps extended so far that there were rings of stones far enough away that he couldn't see them.

It was a little sickening, this scene of death was, especially given the near-paradise he had just been standing in. Even the _air_ looked a little dirtier although maybe that was just his imagination.

Who knew how many other dead groves there were out there, just hidden and out of sight like this one? Out of sight, yes. Out of mind, perhaps. Going away? Not even close.

And the worst bit was that he knew exactly who and what was to blame.

The Lorax had been watching him closely for the last several minutes but the Once-ler was barely aware of it. "It's only going to get worse, you know."

It took the Once-ler a moment to realize that he had even said something at all. "What?"

"It's only going to get worse," the Lorax repeated obligingly. "Every thneed made is another tree dead. I'd say this grove was good for maybe five hundred."

Five hundred thneeds was a lot of the product and a lot of money. But it looked like there had been a lot of cost, as well, which he had somehow never quite noticed or thought about. He had always known that one tree made one thneed and that they had sold several thousand and yet…and yet…

"I had no idea," the Once-ler finally said.

"I know, kid," the Lorax said tiredly. "But as I said, that doesn't mean it's not happening. It may look harmless to you but no resource is infinite. No matter how many trees there are, if you keep cutting them down then one day there won't be any trees left."

A world without trees…the Once-ler tried to imagine it and found that he couldn't. And it would be all his fault. Sure his mother had suggested it but he was the one who had given the final okay.

"What am I supposed to do?" the Once-demanded, feeling himself growing irrationally angry. "Just shut down my company? The economy around here, in case you haven't noticed, is almost entirely centered around thneeds. Am I supposed to just destroy all of that? Even if it saves the trees, would you call that a _good_ outcome?"

"I didn't say that you should do that," the Lorax said, almost infuriatingly calm.

"Didn't you?" the Once-ler challenged.

"It's not for me to say what you _should_ do," the Lorax insisted.

The Once-ler rolled his eyes. "Then what do _you_ want?"

"I want you to stop wiping out the trees and polluting the environment," the Lorax said simply.

As if it were that easy.

"And that _doesn't_ involve shutting down operations," the Once-ler said sarcastically.

"You tell me," the Lorax said, shrugging.

The Once-ler closed his eyes and tried to calm his whirling thoughts.

"The easiest and most surefire way to do that would be to stop this," he admitted. "But…but despite all of this," he gestured to the destruction around them, "I really don't _want_ to."

It was terrible to admit to. It was selfish and greedy and, worst of all, true.

"Then you either need to find a compromise or decide which matters to you more: an environment that people can breathe in and that the animals can live in or your success," the Lorax said quietly, not sounding particularly surprised by the Once-ler's reluctance.

Strangely, that annoyed him all the more.

"How can I compromise?" the Once-ler demanded. It was the ideal solution, of course, he just didn't know if it could really be done.

"Scarcity drives up demand," the Lorax said wisely.

The Once-ler stared at him.

"What?" the Lorax asked defensively. "I've read a business book or two."

"But…you're the guardian of the forest! You speak for the trees!" the Once-ler said dumbly.

"I'm well-aware of who I am," the Lorax said flatly.

"That makes sense," the Once-ler agreed sheepishly. "It's just…**why**?"

"Well appealing to your better instincts wasn't working," the Lorax said uncomfortably. "I needed to try something new."

"Even if scarcity does drive up demand and I could make more money that way, slowing down the harvesting of trees will only delay their ultimate extinction," the Once-ler pointed out.

"Not necessarily," the Lorax hinted.

The Once-ler blinked down at him. "I don't know what you mean."

"Just because you chop down trees doesn't mean you have to leave them like that!" the Lorax burst out.

"I can't exactly bring them back to life," the Once-ler informed him. "I'm not sure where you got the impression that I _can_…Can you do that?"

"No, no, and that's not what I'm getting at," the Lorax replied.

"Well, what am I supposed to do then?" the Once-ler asked blankly.

The Lorax slapped his forehead and started muttering to himself.

"If you're talking to me then you might want to speak louder and open your mouth more, maybe enunciate," the Once-ler suggested helpfully.

"Where do trees come from?" the Lorax asked him, sounding as if he were addressing a small child.

The Once-ler bristled at this. "Is that a trick question?" he asked suspiciously.

The Lorax's jaw dropped. " 'Is it a'…no, of course it's not a trick question!"

"Well, I know that they don't come from storks any more than babies do no matter what my brothers might say," the Once-ler declared.

The Lorax wasn't really sure what to say to that. "…It's really good that you know that, beanpole, but that wasn't what I was going to say."

The Once-ler crossed his arms. "Uh-huh."

"Seeds, beanpole, seeds! Trees come from seeds!" the Lorax shouted, losing his patience.

"I know that," the Once-ler insisted, mildly offended.

"I'm not convinced," the Lorax said bluntly.

"Okay, seeds come from trees. Wait, reverse that," the Once-ler, blinking. "Or not. It works both ways. Trees come from seeds and seeds come from trees. But what does that have to do…with…"

"Yes?" the Lorax said encouragingly.

"You think I should plant new seeds for every tree I cut down," the Once-ler realized.

"It would seriously decrease the likelihood of wiping them all out," the Lorax agreed. "Especially if you slow down your harvesting. It takes about a year to get from a seed to a fully-grown truffula tree."

"Why aren't you trying to convince me to stop cutting trees down altogether?" the Once-ler asked, surprised. "That's usually your pitch."

"If you _could_ go back to not killing the trees then that would be great," the Lorax said enthusiastically. "But if I can't even convince you to reseed then I won't be able to convince you of anything further."

That was a good point, actually.

"Fine, I'll plant some seeds," the Once-ler agreed. However he felt personally, it was just good business to not destroy the resource he needed to produce his thneeds.

The Lorax beamed at him. "I'll hold you to it. And should you break this promise, too, I cannot promise that your bed will not end up in the river again."

"I thought you promised not to try to kill me again," the Once-ler protested.

"And you promised to reseed," the Lorax said pointedly.

"I'll keep my promise," the Once-ler said, rolling his eyes.

"Then I'll keep mine. Now that that's settled, there's still the matter of pollution," the Lorax added.

"The what?" the Once-ler asked, thrown by the sudden change of topic. "Is this the last thing we have to settle?"

"I think so, yeah," the Lorax confirmed. "You can't just have all the smoke and sludge from your factory released into the environment."

"Well, what else am I supposed to do with it?" the Once-ler asked reasonably. "_Eat_ it?"

""I don't know. Maybe produce less of it," the Lorax suggested. "You're a smart kid; I'm sure you'll think of something."

"What's the big deal, anyway?" the Once-ler demanded. "I mean, I can see the trees but _this_?"

"Yes, _this_," the Lorax confirmed. "Don't you think that the air here looks a little…unclean?" the Lorax asked pointedly.

The Once-ler wouldn't look at him. "No…"

"Pollution kills trees which we've just agreed you both need and want," the Lorax reminded him. "And it makes the animals sick and makes it harder for them to find food. And people aren't immune to pollution, either. Do you want to spend the rest of your life coughing or having to wear one of those masks?"

"Well, no," the Once-ler conceded.

"And don't even get me started on the stuff you're putting gin the water you both bathe in and need to drink," the Lorax continued.

"Okay, okay, I'll see what I can do," the Once-ler said hurriedly. "Our current method of disposing of waste isn't necessary for the company like the tree harvesting is so that'll probably be easier."

"That's all I ask," the Lorax said serenely.

The Once-ler rolled his eyes again. " 'All you ask' my…"

"Besides, you know that sooner or later either everyone in the world will have a thneed or at least everyone who wants one so unless your product is really breakable-"

"It's not!" the Once-ler insisted.

"Then you're going to sell all the thneeds you're going to sell at some point and so you'll need a new product. You probably don't want a ruined environment on top of that," the Lorax offered.

The Once-ler froze. "A new product?"

"Well, yeah. I mean it may take _years_ to get to that point but eventually…" the Lorax trailed off.

"I need to get home and start thinking," the Once-ler said distractedly. "This is going to be hard since the thneed does everything but I've got time."

"Well, I guess I'm about done here anyway," the Lorax decided. "But I'll be watching you. Just in case."

The Once-ler just shook his head, amused. "Of course you will. I'll see you Wednesday at three?"

"I am _not_ predictable!"

* * *

The Once-ler steeled himself before entering his home that night. Despite what he'd said, he hadn't gone straight home after he left the Lorax because he'd needed to think and plan for the future and he thought he might have finally figured some things out.

And he just knew how his family was going to react, particularly his mother.

She was waiting for him and the minute he opened the door she threw her arms around him and hugged him so tight he almost couldn't breathe. "Oh, Once! You've returned to us! I was so worried."

"I told you I'd be fine," he reminded her.

"Of course you did," she said dismissively.

"Listen, we need to talk," he said slowly.

Suspicious dawned in her eyes. "What did that horrible Lorax say to you?"

"It doesn't matter, really," the Once-ler said, shrugging. "What matters is that I've come to realize that there needs to be some changes around here."

Screaming right then was perhaps a bit premature.

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	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Disclaimer: I do not own the Lorax.

It was remarkable, really, the way that his family didn't stop trying to change his mind on his new policies until the first quarter earnings after they had been implemented showed that they weren't losing money after all.

Really, they had been so very persistent about it that if they weren't his family, he probably would have fired them all. As it was, he was seriously wondering what they even did all day.

The pollution hadn't been completely eliminated though he was working on that and at the very least it had all been reduced. Scientists were falling all over themselves to try and get his attention by bringing down the pollution level more than the others and while it was all rather bizarre, he had to say that he approved of the results.

He was still cutting down _some_ of the trees because he still couldn't get the tufts plucked from the living trees fast enough but he was having some of the trees hand-plucked and he was replacing every tree he cut down with one and sometimes two more.

He was still trying to come up with a product to eventually replace the thneed and though he'd had a few ideas, none of them were really jumping out at him. Still, he had time.

To his great surprise, since he had started trying to improve the environment (or at least maintain it), he was actually feeling even _better_ about being a success. He hadn't actually thought it was possible but it turned out that it was. The Lorax had stopped telling him that he was a terrible person and it turned out that not being told how awful he was really had a way of improving his mood. Even his family, who relied on him for their living, focused all their complaints on the Lorax.

It almost made him wonder why he had taken so long to get on board with the whole environmentally friendly business practice thing.

And the day he had first seen his picture of the decimated grove the Lorax had taken him to right next to that same grove sprouting hundreds of tiny Truffula trees had been the third time in his life he felt that he could fly. Fortunately, he didn't try because he was sure that that would just end in tears but he felt it all the same. The first two days, of course, were when he first discovered this place and when he had sold his first thneed.

The thneed always made him feel good and he was pleased that there was no longer any chance, however slight, that his decisions might mean that his invention no longer brought him joy.

He'd even seen the animals more than he had been (coincidentally on days when he had sent his Aunt Grizelda to do something else) as well as the Lorax who, despite his claims of unpredictability, continued to show up at his office every Wednesday at three.

"All I'm saying is that it's weird," he told Norma one day about fifteen minutes before they expected the Lorax.

"I don't see why it's weird," Norma disagreed.

"Yeah but you never see _anything_ as weird," the Once-ler pointed out.

"Not true. I find it very weird that your mother is so intent on getting me fired," Norma informed him.

"Well…actually, I find that weird, too," the Once-ler admitted. "But you have to admit that your weirdness threshold is much higher than most people. Or is it lower? I can never remember. Either way, it takes a lot more weirdness for something to register as weird to you than it does for most people."

"Maybe you're just overly sensitive to things that you think are odd," Norma suggested.

"Me and everyone else around?" the Once-ler asked skeptically.

"Oh, so you've found someone who agrees with you that this is weird?" Norma asked sweetly.

The Once-ler slumped. "Well…no." And it hadn't been for lack of trying, either. He'd had people polling the townspeople and none of them found it at all odd. "But none of you have really left the town so of course you wouldn't think it was weird!"

"I think you're trying a little too hard," Norma opined.

"This town has _no name_!" the Once-ler burst out.

"Why do we need a name?" Norma asked reasonably. "We all know what someone's talking about when they say 'the town.' You yourself have referred to the town a few times in this conversation already."

"Yes but there _are_ other towns out there," the Once-ler pointed out.

Norma shrugged. "And the people here don't really travel. Besides, everyone outside the town has already begun to address their letters to Thneedville."

The Once-ler's eyes lit up. "_Thneedville_?"

Norma took one look at his face and reached for her planner. "Would you like me to start looking into real estate, sir?"

The Once-ler nodded vaguely, distracted by the cheery thoughts of an entire town named after him. And why not? The town _needed_ a name, even if he was the only one who could see that. And why not name it after his thneeds? They were the only reason that anyone had even heard of the town much less wanted anything to do with it. And they were the lifeblood of the place, really. Already people were having a hard time picturing a life before thneeds and that had been exactly what he'd hoped for so long ago when he first got the idea into his head.

The Once-ler would feel self-conscious about directly naming the town after himself (because, really, who did that?) but naming it after the product synonymous was his name was just as good. He'd be immortalized. He would be remembered even after the thneeds fell out of favor (if such a dreadful thing ever occurred) because as long as this town stood then he had made his mark on the world.

He had had such difficulty trying to define success. At first he thought it was just coming up with the thneed and creating it and then he had thought it was selling one. After that, success was everyone in town possessing one and then it was watching the thneed counter tick up, up, up. Every time, though, a small part of him doubted. What _was _success really? But now he thought he finally found it. A whole town named after the thneed. If that wasn't success, what was?

Besides, Thneedville sounded really catchy. He always knew that 'thneed' wasn't a stupid name no matter what the twins had said. They were just jealous that he was clearly going places in life and they really didn't have grand plans for their future. It was okay, though, because he was above pettiness and was glad to let them and the rest of their family share in his triumph.

Of course, while the town was pretty okay as it was, if it was going to be called _Thneedville_ then it did need some work done. For starters, there should be a statue of him. Nothing _too much_, of course, but just to remind people who had forced their town out of its sleepy obscurity. He was sure that Norma could work out all the details there; she had very good taste.

"Thneedville," the Once-ler murmured dreamily. "I like the sound of that."

"Well I don't," the Lorax said flatly.

The Once-ler started because he hadn't noticed his entrance. Of course, with the Lorax's diminutive stature that wasn't an uncommon occurrence.

The Once-ler groaned. "Oh, what now? Let me guess, somehow naming our desperately in need of a name town Thneedville would kill all of the trees."

"No," the Lorax replied. "But this kind of power has a way of going to your head."

"I don't know what you're talking about," the Once-ler declared, crossing his arms.

The Lorax shook his head. "You never do, beanpole. You never do."

"Why can't I ever have anything nice?" the Once-ler complained.

The Lorax eyed his green suit distastefully. "Probably because you have terrible taste."

"Just because it clashes with _you_ doesn't mean it doesn't look good on me!" the Once-ler protested.

"No, I just don't think something so ostentatious and pretentious would look good on anybody," the Lorax explained. "And I'll have you know that I look fetching in green."

"Well I think it looks nice," Norma said loyally.

The Once-ler smiled at her, deciding to take a chance. "Thank you. And since you, unlike some people, are capable of being nice to me, do you want to have dinner tonight? I know you were waiting for the chance to tell me about your niece's recovery."

Norma nodded, smiling herself. "I'd be delighted to. It's the strangest thing. Christine has been having problems breathing but lately all of that's going away."

"Huh. Imagine that," the Once-ler said thoughtfully.

The Lorax snorted. "Yeah, 'imagine that.' And what do you mean that I'm never nice to you? I'm _always_ nice to you."

"You couldn't even pretend to be friends in front of my family who were all painfully aware that I'd never had a friend," the Once-ler retorted, realizing only after he'd said it that that came out a lot less careless than it had in his head.

The Lorax was staring at him like he'd grown an extra head.

"What?" he asked self-consciously.

"All this time…" the Lorax muttered.

"All this time _what_?" the Once-ler asked, having a sneaking suspicion that he wouldn't like where this was going.

"All this time you're still upset over _that_? Is that why you wouldn't listen to me about the trees?" the Lorax demanded.

"Nope, it's completely unrelated," the Once-ler insisted. "Although, for the record, I take promises made to friends a lot more seriously than I do promises made to acquaintances."

"Even close acquaintances?" the Lorax inquired.

The Once-ler nodded. "Even them."

"Look, beanpole, I wasn't happy that you brought your environmentally disastrous family to expand your potentially tree-killing business and that everyone wanted a piece of the tufts for a thneed. I certainly wasn't about to give them the idea that they could dismiss my concerns just because we were friends!" the Lorax exclaimed.

"So…just so we're clear," the Once-ler said, trying very hard to hide any sort of a grin but only partially succeeding. "Are you saying that-"

"Yes, fine, we're friends!" the Lorax cried out, throwing his hands up in the air. "Are you happy now?"

The Once-ler let a smile spread over his face. "Yes, I believe I am."

"So does that mean you can finally stop biggering?" the Lorax asked hopefully.

"Never going to happen," the Once-ler said cheerfully. "And what's your problem with that anyway now that it's not hurting the environment anymore? Do you just hate business or something?"

"…That book gave me a headache," the Lorax admitted.

The Once-ler laughed, feeling strangely free in the knowledge that he had never been happier than this moment. Some might say that there was nowhere to go but down and in the past he might have believed that, too. Now, though...now he wasn't so sure.

Who said that happiness had a limit?

And like he'd always said (though admittedly he'd needed some slight preventative policy changes but hey, no one was perfect), how bad could it possibly be?

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